Cantor Fitzgerald Halved Nvidia Holdings Amid Scrutiny Over AI Chip Smuggling

Wall Street brokerage Cantor Fitzgerald reduced its reported holdings in Nvidia by 49% between September 2025 and March 2026, according to an analysis of regulatory filings reported by CNBC Business (https://www.cnbc.com/2026/11/13/howard-lutnick-nvidia-jensen-huang-china-cantor-fitzgerald.html). The reduction occurred during a period when national security officials urged Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to act against entities suspected of rerouting advanced artificial intelligence processors to China.

Lutnick formerly chaired Cantor Fitzgerald before stepping down in February 2025 to join President Donald Trump's cabinet. His sons, Brandon and Kyle Lutnick, now oversee the firm. While Cantor has conducted extensive financial business across Nvidia's ecosystem, there is no evidence that nonpublic intelligence guided the firm's trading or that its commercial portfolio influenced policy determinations at the Commerce Department.

Public securities filings reveal that Cantor held more than 3.5 million Nvidia shares valued at $479 million at the end of 2024, representing its second-largest equity holding behind MicroStrategy (now Strategy). The share count remained steady through September 2025 as its valuation grew to $652 million following the administration's easing of restrictions on lower-tier H20 chips. Over the subsequent two quarters, Cantor's reported stake declined to 3 million shares in December and 1.78 million shares worth $310 million by the end of March 2026. Reported holdings stood at 1.81 million shares as of June 30.

The portfolio reduction unfolded alongside friction inside the executive branch regarding export controls. Axios reported that White House and intelligence officials repeatedly pushed Lutnick to penalize Megaspeed, a Singapore-based distributor suspected of funneling restricted Nvidia accelerators into China. Lutnick resisted those measures, even after Trump authorized export curbs on Nov. 5 and after Lutnick received intelligence briefings concerning Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang's contacts with an alleged Chinese intelligence operative. Huang resigned on Thursday amid widening fallout.

Administration divisions became public on Friday when Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on CNBC that the Departments of Treasury, Defense, and State, alongside the U.S. Trade Representative, had supported adding Megaspeed to the trade restriction entity list for months. Bessent noted that entity list actions fall under the Commerce Department's internal regulatory mandate.

In response to inquiries, a Cantor spokesperson told CNBC Business that the brokerage maintains only immaterial proprietary positions in Nvidia, explaining that its quarterly 13F figures reflect equity inventory maintained in the ordinary course of business to hedge client swap agreements. Most of the shares were held through CF Secured, a broker-dealer subsidiary that utilizes securities and derivatives for hedging. Cantor also maintained substantial put options that provide downside protection.

During the same period, Cantor continued executing advisory and underwriting transactions for companies partnering with Nvidia. In May 2026, Cantor served as a bookrunner alongside Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase for a $3 billion convertible bond offering by Australian data center operator IREN, which had announced a five-year, $3.4 billion cloud computing contract with Nvidia. Cantor also advised AI data center developer Lancium on a $600 million funding package in late 2025, and Cantor-controlled Newmark arranged $7.1 billion in construction loans for Lancium's campus before Nvidia committed to a $2 billion equity investment in August.

Congressional scrutiny has expanded following the disclosures. Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons directed formal requests this week to Lutnick, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and White House chief of staff Stephen Miller to preserve all records related to semiconductor export decisions and counterintelligence warnings.

A White House official stated that Trump retains complete confidence in Lutnick. Cantor is scheduled to file its updated third-quarter 13F portfolio disclosure on Monday.